Genesis 49:8-12 "Judah, thou art he whom thy brethren shall praise: thy hand shall be in the neck of thine enemies; thy father's children shall bow down before thee. Judah is a lion's whelp: from the prey, my son, thou art gone up: he stooped down, he couched as a lion, and as an old lion; who shall rouse him up? The sceptre shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his feet, until Shiloh come; and unto him shall the gathering of the people be. Binding his foal unto the vine, and his ass's colt unto the choice vine; he washed his garments in wine, and his clothes in the blood of grapes: His eyes shall be red with wine, and his teeth white with milk."
At the end of his days, we find Israel prophesying concerning his sons. He has already dealt with Reuben, Simeon, and Levi in the previous verses. He has much more to say about Judah. Judah is seen in a more favorable light, not because of Judah himself, but because of the one who should be raised up out of that tribe.
The scripture tells us that Jesus was of the tribe of Judah. Certainly, He is the one that we praise for His redemptive work and for His great love for us. Our relationship was sealed in His resurrection when He told Mary to “Go to my brethren…(John 20:17).” The Father’s children bow down before Jesus. He has overcome sin, death, and the grave.
There will be no other King in our lives. No longer do we struggle under a king like the world has. The sceptre of righteous judgment and peace is in His hand. We will have no other lawgiver, for He is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone that believes (Romans 10:4). Believing it does not make it so, but we have the joy and comfort of it here when we are blessed to believe.
We know that our Shiloh (Messiah) is described as being the vine. It was prophesied of Him that He would ride into Jerusalem on an ass’s colt. He trod the winepress alone for our redemption. He put on garments of purple, and although He was despised and rejected of men, He is the Beloved of His Father. He has bought us not with corruptible things, but by His own blood. It is no wonder that “unto Him shall the gathering of the people be.”